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Thesis (M. Dev.) -- University of Limpopo, 2017. / The purpose of this study was to assess and reflect on the perceptions of educators towards the implementation of an Integrated Quality Management System in the White Hazy Circuit, Mpumalanga Province. The IQMS is a clear reaction to the autocratic mode of evaluation that operated during the Apartheid era and is a major shift from the old paradigm of external evaluators. The new paradigm calls for a joint collaboration between schools, districts and supervisory unit with the main aim to enhance the quality of education in South Africa. The researcher used quantitative method for this study. In its quantitative approach the study was to describe, analyse and interpret the data to determine if there were any negative perceptions among White Hazy educators about IQMS implementation. The reason to use this approach was to obtain the detailed descriptions of the information required for the study. Secondly results are based on objective method which can be expressed in a specific management technology. Data collection was done using structured questionnaires (N = 97). Respondents of all post level in the teaching profession participated. The participants were selected randomly to give equal participation of all respondents from 16 selected schools. The participants come from both primary and secondary schools. The study highlighted that compliance, lack of training, shifting of responsibility to one another and insufficient time for development play a significant role in IQMS implementation. The findings revealed that the IQMS Policy is implemented in schools. However, there are some areas where there is a lack of school based teacher development to some schools and there is no consistency in the implementation which affected teacher performance and learner performance. The results which arose from the study suggested the following recommendations: quarterly training to enhance service delivery and the reviewing of the current policy to cover trends of contemporary conditions in schools and to capacitate school management teams to become effective in the IQMS implementation.

This Master´s Thesis is aimed at finding optimal processes of two systems ISO 9001:2000 in KVS EKODIVIZE corporation used in different ways. The objective of this thesis is unification of this processes and interpretation of costs related with this unification.

The diploma thesis deals with the quality of tourism services in the city and its evaluation. As a source of data, primary research of service providers in the urban destination as well as the secondary data from previous researches was used. The overall objective was to evaluate approaches to the quality of tourism services in urban destinations. At the same time, the most important quality factors influencing the demand from the point of view of service providers was determined thus the cultural-social attractions, accommodation and boarding. The findings of the thesis are the proposal for evaluation of the product quality in a case study Brno and surrounding (Brno a okolí), the contribution is an increase of the demand for the destination and its turnout.

To reach the sustainable development goals of agenda 2030, mankind must continuously work towards developing sustainable industrial processes. The concept of Total Quality Management, Lean/Green manufacturing has been frequently applied separately, but studies indicate that the combination of the concepts can yield synergically benefits from an economic and environmental perspective. The process industry has a continuous flow of residuals which is a potential opportunity to gain a competitive edge through eliminating waste and embracing a circular economy system. The lack of exploring operational methods to achieve better results in relation to waste management and utilization of waste have inspired this thesis. This study has established a chain of events that enable other researchers and managers to find, define, explain and solve problems connected to waste management systems. The results indicate that it is possible to find opportunities within the organization to reuse already procured resources but also that the utility of storage vessels is connected to the overall efficiency of the waste management system. Interestingly, the results also indicate that there is an industrial culture related to the case that hampers the increase of efficiency which can be explained by the cornerstones of Total Quality Management and Lean manufacturing. Lean waste i.e., unused creativity thrives and hampers new ways to decrease cost and lower environmental impact when employees are not encouraged to communicate or innovate. Monetary gains and environmental savings is achievable by measuring, including and involving personal combined with a dedicated management. / <p>En väl genomförd och beskriven studie där studenterna lyckas ge bidrag av både praktisk naturoch teoretisk.</p>

The utilization of total quality management (TQM) is advocated by some experts, as a partial remedy to the ills of the healthcare industry. However, some healthcare administrators are not yet sold on TQM. Some healthcare administrators still question the impact of TQM on the operational, financial and strategic health of their institutions. They consider the investment in TQM as unjustifiable because the return on such investment in their mind is questionable. This study illustrates how the constant market share model can be utilized to show the competitive benefits of TQM. Based on the results of this study, it is concluded that the fears of some healthcare administrators are unfounded. Not only that TQM does not compromise organizational effectiveness, but it actually improves it, as it contributes to increasing market share.

The literature clearly indicates that service organizations are lagging behind their manufacturing counterparts in terms of the effective deployment of total quality management (TQM) practices aimed at achieving operational and strategic objectives. The objective of this study is to shed some light on the current TQM practices of service organizations. In general, the results of this study appear to confirm the reported literature findings concerning outcomes and benefits of effective TQM implementation. More importantly, the results underscore the differences in TQM implementation practices and benefits due to some industry-specific factors. The lack of commitment to TQM implementation on the part of high percentage of the surveyed service organizations in this study is alarming.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to assess the management of public-sector projects in Portugal paying particular attention to the extent to which total quality management (TQM) principles are being utilized in such projects. Design/methodology/approach: Based on an extensive review of the literature, nine propositions are advanced about the interrelationships among seven factors that were identified, in a previous study, as having some influence on the management process in the planning and implementation of public-sector projects in Portugal. Structural equation modeling was used to investigate these propositions using data obtained from 211 respondents to a survey of project managers from municipalities across Portugal. Findings: The results of the structural equation model indicate that the TQM components working in tandem with project-management-specific variables provide a systematic means of managing the planning and implementation stages of projects, with technical items being critical in the planning stage and softer management items becoming important in the implementation stage. Research limitations/implications: Readers should be careful not to generalize the findings in a global context or for private sector projects. However, researchers are encouraged to extend this study by including other planning and implementation variables with a view to discerning what particular characteristics of a project make it more amenable to TQM solutions. Practical implications: The findings are presented to show how the key components of TQM, customer focus, employee involvement and continuous involvement, can be applied during the planning and implementation stages of projects. Originality/value: The sample size of 211 is representative of the underlying population of project managers in municipalities across Portugal and is comparatively large in relation to other empirical project management studies from Portugal, lending credence to the generalizability of these finding to public-sector projects in Portugal.

Total quality management [TQM] is an approach to improving the competitiveness, effectiveness and flexibility of the whole organization through the improvement of the organizational processes and those who perform them. There has been a rising interest among public sector professionals in examining the applicability and usefulness of TQM methods to public organizations. This research provides descriptive information about the experience of three health care organizations that vary in terms of ownership, whether being publicly or privately owned, with implementing TQM. Participants at these organizations were interviewed, and/or surveyed and observed. The study provides a narrative description of each organization's experience with TQM (their Quality Story) and it compares the implementation of TQM in the three organizations. Moreover, the study explores what role, if any, does ownership have on the implementation of TQM. Finally, the study presents some lessons that could be derived from the experience of these organizations. Conclusions are drawn that TQM could be successfully implemented in both sectors, provided that the process of implementation follows the specific guidelines and principles established in the field. Moreover, difference in ownership between public and private organizations, though important, is not the major factor influencing the implementation and any possible outcomes of a TQM innovation effort. It is rather the involvement and commitment of top management that seem to have the upper hand in influencing the implementation and any possible outcomes of TQM, in public as well as private organizations. However, the research suggests that public sector organizations are more challenged in implementing TQM, due to the multiplicity of their customers and more scrutiny of the tax payer and the media.

In many business sectors today, the focus on quality as a competitive tool is being replaced by a focus on innovation. Research exploring connections between quality management, innovation, and company performance suggests that quality is 'necessary but insufficient' in today's business environment. In short, the question facing managers, particularly those in small firms, is how to adapt their quality management practices to achieve innovation performance in addition to quality performance. To answer this question, West Coast U.S. forest products manufacturers were surveyed about quality management practices and performance with respect to both quality and innovation. Quality management practices were assessed following the systems perspective articulated by the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. Data envelopment analysis was used to identify companies efficiently using quality management practices to lead to quality and/or innovation performance. Survey responses from the efficient firms were then analyzed via cluster analysis to identify two categories of firms: those achieving primarily quality outcomes and those achieving both quality and innovation outcomes. Executives from two firms in each category were interviewed to provide detail on the management practices used by the companies. Interview transcripts were examined to identify similarities and differences in practices between the two categories of firms. Results suggest several specific areas of focus for firms wanting to adapt their quality management practices to achieve both quality and innovation performance. For example, firms focused on innovation proactively seek to identify and meet customers' needs whereas quality-focused firms primarily emphasize reacting to customer complaints. More specifically with respect to 'customer focus', firms focused on innovation emphasize convenience for their customers through practices such as standardizing product lines and providing product specifications on their websites. In contrast, neither quality-focused firm had a website. These firms were at their production capacity (at least prior to the recession) and viewed websites strictly as a means to attract new business rather than as a service to existing customers. Also with regards to customer focus, firms focused on innovation sought to generate new business - not just for their company, but for their customers as well. Beyond customer focus, firms focused on innovation provide employees with opportunities to help the organization implement changes. With respect to benchmarking, firms focused on innovation actively sought to measure their performance against the 'best practice' in the industry; firms focused primarily on quality performance demonstrated little if any emphasis on benchmarking. Finally, there were apparent overarching and hence cultural differences between the two categories of firms - firms focused on innovation were more proactive, strategic, and willing to take risk; in addition, these firms discussed innovation as the means to improve product quality, reduce costs, or attract new customers. By contrast, the quality-focused firms were reactive, conservative, and risk-averse; these firms discussed innovation primarily as 'technology' without reference to potential linkages to company performance.